Communist Party of India (CPI) Rajya Sabha MP from Kerala Binoy Viswam has written to Prime Minister Narendra raising objection against the “11th Report of the Committee of Parliament on Official Languages” saying the report gives undue prominence to Hindi in order to make it India’s dominant language.
In his letter to PM Modi, Viswam said, “I write to raise my strongest objection against the ’11th Report of the Committee of Parliament on Official Languages’ that gives undue prominence to Hindi in order to make it India’s dominant language. As a nation of multiple languages, the imposition of Hindi to the exclusion of others is deeply offensive and threatens the importance of the 21 other official languages recognised in the 8th schedule of the Constitution.”
The Upper House MP claimed that the recommendations in the report echo divisive and dangerous positions that will cause irreparable damage to the ‘Idea of India’.
The report’s central tenet of ‘Hindi for Hindustan’ is an outright rejection of India’s diversity and recommends the imposition of Hindi in all Central government institutions ranging from educational institutions to public offices, he said.
Such a move, Viswam said will disproportionately affect non-Hindi speaking students who constitute a large segment in prestigious institutes such as IIT or IIM from pursuing their education.
“Further the recommendation to take disciplinary action against public servants who do not use Hindi is another example of the reports underlying agenda and lays the ground for stroking great upheaval in the country. The imposition of a singular language to represent the entirety of the Indian people has been the cause of widespread opposition and discontent from the beginning of Independent India to fan that fire is a dangerous and ill-advised move,” wrote the CPI leader.
Viswam further said that several Supreme Court judges, constitutional law scholars, historians, politicians, and other prominent citizens have re-iterated innumerable times that the temptation to impose uniformity has to be resisted and that India’s plurality must be protected.
“In light of the above, I strongly urge you to withdraw this report and seek a broader consultation on this sensitive subject before any such policy decision is made. India is a land of multiple cultures with each citizen’s mother tongue representing a part of their identity, to impose a secondary status on a person’s mother tongue will always be met with strong opposition and cause problems for India’s unity,” he added.